Award Details

Award Information

Name:

Robert J. Parker Graduate Fellowship in Animal Science

Description:

In honour of Dr. Robert (Bob) J. Parker, a beloved administrator, professor and mentor, a fund has been established by his former students, his colleagues and his friends on the occasion of his retirement from the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences on October 31, 1997. The purpose of the fund is to provide a renewable graduate fellowship to an M.Sc. or a Ph.D. student in the Department of Animal Science who is conducting graduate research in the area of swine science.

Bob Parker was born and raised on a small farm in Scotland. He graduated from the University of Glasgow with a Bachelor of Science in 1958 and continued his studies at Reading, where he obtained a post-graduate diploma in 1959. As a youngster, Bob bred bantam chickens but his later academic interests took him in the direction of livestock genetics and breeding. In 1959, Bob came to Manitoba to work as a Research Assistant and soon moved to the Ontario Agricultural College in Guelph to continue his studies. He went on to obtain an M.Sc. from the University of Toronto in 1962 and a Ph.D. from Michigan State University in 1966. Following graduation from Michigan State University, Dr. Parker was appointed Assistant Professor at the University of Manitoba, in the Department of Animal Science. He was promoted to full Professor within ten years and went on to serve as Associate Head of the Department of Animal Science, later as Associate Dean (Research) of the Faculty and, from 1991 to 1996, as Head of Animal Science. He also served as Director of the Glenlea Research Station from 1986 to 1997. He led the Curriculum Task Force in the Faculty in developing and implementing a new curriculum for the Faculty in 1995.

Dr. Parker is being honoured for the administrative contributions that he made to the Faculty of Agricultural and Food Sciences, for his excellence in research (swine genetics and breeding), his giftedness in teaching and his great respect for and encouragement of students, both at the graduate and undergraduate levels. He was a true professor who always had or made time for this students, who challenged them and taught them to appreciate the subject matter which they were learning. He was exceptionally skilled as a graduate advisor, always encouraging, praising and guiding students in a manner that allowed them to excel.

Effective for first offer in the academic session 2000-2001, a graduate fellowship valued at the available annual income from the fund shall be offered to a student who has filed an application for this Fellowship in the Department of Animal Science and who meets the following criteria:

(1) has been accepted to and has enrolled full-time in the Faculty of Graduate Studies in the Department of Animal Science, either at the M.Sc. or Ph.D. level;

(2) is conducting or has proposed to conduct research in the area of animal science;

(3) has been deemed by the selection committee to show great promise in the field of animal science.

If, in the judgment of the selection committee, no candidate of sufficient merit is found, the award may not be offered in that year.

The recipient of the fellowship is eligible for a renewal of this award. An M.Sc. student can hold the award for a total of two consecutive years and a Ph.D. student may hold the award for a total of three consecutive years. In the years in which the award is being renewed for a previous winner, no new winner will be selected. In order to be eligible for the renewal of the award, the recipient must have demonstrated satisfactory progress in the program through the formal progress report submitted to the Faculty of Graduate Studies.

The selection committee shall be the Awards Committee of the Department of Animal Science, which shall consult with the Dean of the Faculty of Graduate Studies (or the Dean’s delegate) on recipient and renewal decisions.

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To be eligible for this scholarship, please submit the application form and all other application documents by the deadline.